The Legend of Zelda: The Ancients
by Raiden Evas
Summary: Link runs into an ancient forest and stumbles upon one of the sealing swords, and breaks the seal. He has released evil far older and stronger than anything Hyrule has faced. Even Ganondorf...  Post-TP Different Link Expanded world from just TP Hyrule
1. Prologue

I do not own The Legend of Zelda and this is merely an original fanfiction for the series. R&E&R

The hardheaded youth ran off into the woods of old, beyond even the edges of the Ordon province, into ancient forests of older magic. The air was thick with wild magic. Gnarled roots and knotty trees made a distinct change from the familiar woods of his childhood.

"Damn.." he panted as he stopped, catching his breath. Ten steps in and he was lost. He got up, and spun around, trying to find the way back. He wasn't afraid of the 'skull kids' as he didn't even believe them, but he wasn't foolish enough to believe he could survive against a record of zero returns.

Suddenly, he heard a hiss seep out from everywhere around him. A chill ran up his spine, followed by the goosebumps and the adrenaline. Six of the 'fabled' skull kids approached him, ready to repel his intrusion into the Sacred Woods. They leaped at him, armed with knives.

The Youth turned and ran again, hoping he picked the right direction...

‡

He continued to run, dodging the trunks and roots and foes. His feet came to a swift stop upon reaching the small meadow: Fairies. The magical little creatures floated around a sword handle sitting above a small platform or pedestal, while most of the blade was in it.

"What..?" the Hylian whispered to himself. He approached and found that the sword was faintly glowing.

He reached for the handle and the fairies all but scattered. His hand took grip of the sword and, with a single massive effort, ripped it from its pedestal. A wave of energy manifested from the hole in the pedestal and threw the Youth back. Hundreds of sinister voices filled the air, whispered and sneered for several seconds and then vanished.

Silence. That's all he could hear, his breath and heart beat, but nothing else. His mind lost awareness and when he woke up again, he was at the edge of the village. What had he unleashed...?


	2. Summons and Orders

Again, I don't own LOZ.

It was about midnight when he came to. The young Hylian stood up shakily, dizzy from the experience in the Elder woods. He wanted to dismiss it to a nightmare and sleep walking, but that hope was soon crushed. He noticed after a moment that, horrifically, it really did happen when he saw the forest green metal of the blade on the ground.

A small party of the villagers returned from their search for him. Amazed and angered by his appearance, they began interrogating him as to "why he ran away instead of facing the consequences", and "why he decided to play a joke on them by sending them on a wild goose chase". The commotion attracted the attention of the village elder, Dirgan.

"Bring the boy to me... set him inside," the old Human-Hylian commanded. The men seized him and brought him before the elder, promptly leaving after delivering the boy. They took the sword and gave it to Dirgan.

The old man examined the sword carefully before looking at the boy with grave disappointment, "Where did you find this...Link...?"

"In the Elder woods..." he mumbled, feeling the disappointment of one of the few people in the world who cared about him.

"The Elder Woods? You know that forest is forbidden! You could have been killed!" Dirgan had adopted the boy into Ordon village when he was but a babe. He wanted the boy to learn a trade and help serve the community, but Link couldn't manage to keep any of his employers satisfied. Dirgan himself summed it up to the villagers' contempt for the outsider. Since then, he'd become more reclusive, with the exception of Tira, the daughter of the swordsman and blacksmith of the village.

Tira had always been friendly to Link. Her father, Eridous, had always been wary of the boy, but only became hostile to him since she 'was of age.' This only inconvenienced their friendship, as they still met up whenever possible.

"Why'd you run off this time?"

"Eridous."

"And by that you mean Tira?"

Link sunk into the chair, his expression swirling into a scowl.

"You want to get out of the village for a while, right?" The boy nodded.

"Take this sword to the library at Castle Town and have them identify it. Let things cool down a bit here. Come back when you find out what it is. I'll let you take Epona, just don't push her too hard."

"Yes sir."

"You leave at midday, so get packed."

With that, he dismissed the boy to gather supplies for his journey.


	3. Leaving the Nest

**Sorry about the short chapters, I'll try to lengthen them as I go. I'm always open to constructive criticism and feed back. Please enjoy and Review**

Link walked out of the Elder's house and walked a couple dozen yards into the woods behind his house to his own little home. It was built around a sizable tree. It was enough room for him and a few amenities and necessities. Humble, but practical.

He walked in and immediately knew Tira was waiting for him. He set the sword down and sighed as he lit the small lantern.

"Running away only makes it worse, Link," she informed him, knowing he already knew.

"Tira..."

"I know..." She knew him better than anyone. He didn't even bother putting up a facade to her. She was always able to see each crack in that smiling mask he put on. However, even she couldn't read him entirely. If he wanted something hidden from her, she wouldn't bother asking, but would still spend her time with him.

But this was something he had to tell her. He let his face fall into his hands as he sat on his bed.

"Link? What's wrong?"

"I'm leaving at midday."

"Leaving?" she inquired, understanding but not believing him.

"Dirgan wants me to go to castle town to identify a sword I found in the Elder Woods. I won't be back for about a week."

"A week? Is castle town so far? And you were in the Elder Woods?"

"Yeah, I ran into the Elder Woods. That's where I found that." He motioned over to the case by the door.

"Do you need any help? Packing, I mean?"

"No but your company is still welcome." He smiled at her, teasing her with feigned formality.

She smirked, and they both walked out to the small shed on the side of the hut. They pulled out the saddle Dirgan gave him, since Dirgan no longer rode. Link got a couple days changes of clothes and a small tent, and packed them in riding bags. Tira made a makeshift leather scabbard for the unknown sword out of some extra strips Link had from a previous project.

It was still a couple hours before dawn, so they first washed Epona, then while Link got a few hours of much-needed rest, Tira finished packing a few light comforts for the road, and prepared a small breakfast for them, which turned out to be a mixture diced potatoes, cucco eggs, Ordon goat cheese, and the last bit of the preserved goat meat: good breakfast for a long day.

Link had decided to leave just a bit after sunrise, so after breakfast Tira helped him get Epona tacked up and he finished securing the bags and the sword. He smiled as the sun finally rose out over the lake, and turned to Tira.

"Take care, you damn fool." she told him, smiling.

His eyes glared at hers for a fleeting instant before softening as he said, "I won't be long, Tira."

With that, he embraced her. She returned the hug graciously, and then kissed his cheek.

"Be safe," she told her blushing friend.

"I will..." he said as he took the saddle and gave her one last smile before spurring Epona through the village on the way out...

†

As Link left the Ordon woods, paranoia and apprehension gripped him. He heard a voice similar to one of those from the Elder Woods. Epona had a similar tension. Link drew the strange sword, and urged Epona on with a slow trot. A blood-curdling scream was issued by an invisible spirit, startling the horse into a full gallop. Link was stunned by the cry, but held tight to the reigns as Epona sprinted out of the forests and finally into the great field of Hyrule before stopping, half galloping a full hour. Her partner comforted her and sat with her to rest a several minutes.

The field's sheer openness bewildered him at first. All he could see was a gentle roll to the land and a few sparse and unfamiliar trees. All else was sky and grass. The gentle breeze combed through the tall grasses like a brush through hair. Large furred creatures roamed about the field, grazing on the wild took a couple minutes to absorb this new area.

He climbed a nearby tree to try and catch a glimpse of his goal. He was barely able to make out the spires of the castle. Slipping down back to solid ground, he mounted Epona once more and urged her into a trot. He was finally beginning his journey to the Capital. He was finally beginning his adventure...


	4. Nightmares and New Friends

**Please review and critique this. Tell me what you like about it (or don't like about it). Gonna be introducing some new faces soon. R.E.R. I do not own LOZ**

All in a matter of a few minutes the lightly clouded twilight sky overhead raged into a ferocious tempest. Link pushed Epona into a gallop and took shelter at a private ranch for the evening.

They slipped into the stables and he eased the riding totes and the saddle off her. He then slipped out of the stables and over to the house, knocking gently on the door.

The door cracked and a soft feminine voice greeted Link, "Why, what have we here? Come in out of the rain, young man." The woman opened the door enough for him to enter. She appeared to be in her thirties and had the telling bulge of pregnancy. She closed the door behind him and the rest of her family looked up from their meal at their guest.

The woman's husband stood and welcomed the boy, "Come on in, lad. I'm Trist and this is my family and this is our ranch. It's not often we get visitors out here." He pulled out a chair for Link at the table while his wife, Alie, set for him a bowl of stew. Their kids, a boy and a girl, were a bit younger than him, but were possibly twins. They looked on at him in wonder, which made Link very self-conscious.

"so Lad, You got a name?"

"Link."

"Is there anything we can do for you, Link?" Alie offered in generosity.

"Could my horse and I stay the night here?" He asked humbly, "I'll pay for the oats and hay for Epona."

Trist considered the offer for a moment, "Very well, you may stay and don't worry about paying. Hay and oats are easily gathered from the fields. But eat up before the stew goes cold."

"Thank you, Mr. Trist," Link replied with sincere gratitude, taking a spoonful of the warm stew. He enjoyed the pot roast stew and counted himself lucky for such hospitality. Alie set up the spare room for him, while Trist set up Epona for the night.

"That's a beautiful horse there, Link," Trist commented, "How much would you willing to part with her for?"

"She's not for sale. I'd never sell Epona." His words had a slight bite to them. He felt somewhat insulted that his host would try and buy off his horse.

Trist laughed, "relax, lad. I was only ribbing ya. I wouldn't part with a horse like that either."

They were silent for a moment as Link unstrapped the light jerkin and sword from his person. Trist spoke up again to break the awkward silence, "So, uh, where you from Link?"

"Ordon village."

"We don't get anybody from Ordon coming up into Hyrule. Only one or two a year."

"For the Castle Town festivals? We send the Royal family a gift every other year. I know that much."

"I never knew that."

Link sighed and muttered, "Thank you for letting me stay the night. I'm getting tired but thanks for the company and for setting up Epona."

Trist smiled and stood up walking out of the room, "G'night Lad."

Link blew out the lantern, and rested on the comfortable bed. He recollected his day before his thoughts gave way to sleep and dreams...

‡

_Clouds had deprived the village of light from the full moon. The demonic poes had slipped into the village, undetected. Their need was dire for their sustenance: emotions, specifically negative emotions. They had to cause fear to feed on it. _

_ Like a trap set by the hunter, the poes engineered a ploy. They stole one of the goats and mutilated it completely. They tore it apart into all of its parts, eating none but using it all. They reassembled the mutilated ewe into a shrine of macabre horror and desecration. The painted the ground around with blood and bowels. One of the six poes then walked out to the alarm bell and proceeded to ring it before they all blended into invisibility. Trap set._

_ The first doors opened up with torches and blades of all sorts in seconds. The crowd gathered around the little shrine to horror. The poes began hissing and hooting and screaming. Immediately, the crowd broke into a frenzy, like ants fleeing a fire. Trap sprung._

_ Immediately, the poes had a buffet of emotions before them, each one more succulent than the last. They soon found their supply decreasing as the people retreated into their homes. They got as much as they could of their fearful prey. Some of the prey passed out from being drained. The poes laughed in their gluttonous and sadistic meal. Until they prey was all gone._

_ A lone young woman fled as fast she could from the invisible spirit. Her ankle caught a hole in the grass and she fell helplessly. She looked up at the now visible poe. Rivulets of tears flowed over and down her face. Her futile cries echoed uselessly into the night. Her heart slammed against the rest of her body as the poe approached her like a starved predator approaches helpless prey. and then-_

‡

Link shot out of the bed in an instant, whispering her name, "Tira, Tira..."

the sheets were ravaged like a crumpled scroll; his skin had the sheen of sweat; his entire body felt heavy; his heart beat like a field drum. His body calmed after several moments. He sat cross-legged, resting his elbows on his knees and holding his face in his hands. He looked out the window; dawn had broken and the sun was moments from rising.

Link jumped as Alie knocked at his door, "Link, are you decent?"

quickly, he pulled on one of the shirts from the riding bag and slipped into the legging he'd set out, before responding, "Yes."

she opened the door and flashed a warm smile to him, "Before you go, have some breakfast. I made you a plate downstairs."

He nodded and gathered his things and bags, and headed downstairs.

He sat in the place set for him and ate the meal silently. He enjoyed the eggs and bacon, complimented Alie on her skill. She gave him a small jar of dried meat: bits of the meat she'd used for the last few meals, dried and preserved. He thanked her for her generosity.

"Take care and come back some time, Lad," Trist called out to him from the enclosure. Soon after, he tacked up Epona, tied off the bags and sword, mounted and ran back into the fields, the dream still vivid in his mind.


	5. Trouble on the Bridge

**Ok, Well, some of you might hate me by the end of this chapter for such a slow start, but rest assured. All is necessary. On the other hand, HERE COMES A TASTE OF THE PLOT! Again I do not own LOZ. Enjoy and please... I'm begging you... REVIEW!**

The skies remained clear through the slow day. Around mid-afternoon, Link made it to the gates of Lanayru, the checkpoint on the southern side of the Great Hylian Bridge. The gates and bridge were closed. A lone guard stood watch on the outside of the tower. He was short for a soldier and his voice still sounded young. Link estimated he wasn't much older than himself.

Link trotted up to the bivouac stationed at the outside of the gate and asked, "Can I get through? I have an errand at the Library."

The guard replied resolutely, "The bridge is closed, due to a poe incident yesterday." Link stiffened at the mention of poes. "The bridge is closed until that situation is solved and resolved."

"is there any way I can get through?"

The guard thought for a moment and went in to get the commander. After a few minutes of heated discussion, the commander stepped out. The commander was an older gentlemen in his forties. The silver of his helm was almost matched by his salt and pepper mustache and beard. His rough build gave him a fearsome appearance.

"What's this Errand of yours, boy?" He bellowed with a deep bass of a voice.

Link hesitated at first, but responded with some gumption, "I need to get this identified by the Librarian." He motioned towards the sword on his back. Link was getting frustrated by the delay and it was beginning to show.

The commander thought about it and made the judgment call, "you can go through at your own risk, Lad. If it's that important, we'll open the gate to you."

He nodded and the commander made a swift motion with his wrist. The gate opened before them and Link saw a bare and clear stone road which he knew rested hundreds of feet over the lake below. He'd not expected the bridge to be so long. He could only see the other side because of its checkpoint, a similar massive stone gate.

Paranoia began to claw at him. He realized how vulnerable he was to anything unseen on the bridge. What's worse: both he and Epona knew there were poes around, one stronger than the others, five in total. They knew the feeling of a poe from their previous experiences, Link in particular. He remembered the strong presences flying out of sealed stone. The wind howled vigorously through the columns beneath the stone road. A shock wave rocked the the far gate as it burst open. People began flooding onto the towering bridge. Soon, they'd literally filled the bridge. Then the poes revealed themselves.

Hysteria and fear overcame the crowd and they became a mob: the prey for the poes. The poes began feeding on the rioting crowd immediately. Link only counted four poes and spurred Epona into a gallop as the crowd split into a path. Link drew his sword, desperately looking for the last poe. He cleared the far gate and looked back over the bridge. The four poes had gone but he still felt that one strong force. The crowd was now regaining sense but it was still chaos on the bridge.

He noticed a single figure in the crowd in a black tunic. The figure glanced back at Link and smiled darkly before turning back and walking back to the southern gate. Epona turned at her own accord away from the bridge. Link rubbed her shoulder as she begin a nervous trot away from the sudden experience. Castle town would only be a few leagues away.

‡

Epona trotted lazily up the wooden drawbridge. She was tired from the galloping, as her usual purpose farming rarely involved extensive galloping. They trotted through the stone gates into the city. Link led Epona into what he guessed were the stables. He guessed right and paid the owner to take care of Epona for the day. An old man approached him. He seemed priestly and carried a small bucket.

"please donate to the aid of poor in our land."

link gave the man a rupee and went on his way. He'd never realized how rough the city could be. His imagination always told him it was full of the nice and rich folk. There were the dregs of society down here, dressed in little more than scraps. He reached down to fasten his rupees back to his belt when the satchel was snatched out of his hand by a child.

Link turned and reached out for the theif but caught air. The boy was no older than ten. He was dressed in rags but had a look of mischief and defiance about him.

"llokin' for thhis," the youth taunted, shaking the small sack of rupees. Link took a leap at the boy, who in turn threw the sack to another boy. Link took off after the next boy, suddenly the city became the field for a game of keep-away.

Bobbing and weaving through the crowds, link grew tired of the game very quickly. He pulled out his sword and finally cornered the first kid who actually stole his money. He held the blade at the thief. The kid whimpered in fear and produced the sack, shaking the rupees inside before tossing them back to his victim.

He sheathed his sword and turned but then stopped.

"hey, kid. What's your name?"

"Ch-Ch-Chase," the kid was obviously still frightened of him. He was stuttering and shaking like a freezing cucco.

He smiled and thought to himself, _good, he won't lie, _"Where is the Library? I have an important task there."

"the Library? You can't get into the Library. It's in the Castle. An outsider like you will have a tough time getting into the Castle."

Link sighed, but then realized the mischievous youth's knack. "do you know of any ways into the inner walls?"

The boy seemed flustered, distraught even. But he nodded slowly, and said slyly, " Follow me."

and they slipped into the underground.


	6. Into the City

**Here we are again. Finally into the city. More plot coming up in the next couple of chapters. Our first real fight! Meeting the mysterious Librarian soon. As always reviews for guesses and suggestions are welcome. Enjoy.**

As they strolled into the sewers, Link was overcome by the rank smell. Immediately, he turned and vomited. The odor of refuse hung heavy in the air.

"You get used to the smell." the young klepto stated.

"I don't think I want to..." He felt like vomiting again but managed to keep it down this time. How did these people survive here?

They walked into a 'meeting hall' of the sewers, if one could call it a hall. It was a large circular closed room with a ladder to the topside. _Surely we aren't here so easily, _Link thought to himself. There were a couple others in the room.

The others nodded to Chase, who nodded back. He motioned toward one of the crates. As one of the boys reached into the crate, two of the four doors burst open seemingly on their own accord. Link knew better and drew the sealing sword. The unseen forces manifested as poes and began to feed on the emotions of the four terrified boys. Link jumped and swung the sword down onto one of them. The poe howled in pain and turned its attention towards its assailant.

Both poes turned their focus to Link and took positions on either side of him. They were ravenous and hungry, but safety comes before food. The ghosts bared their rotten, bloodied, teeth at him. Their long snake-like tongues licked the air like flames. Suddenly, the wounded poe pounced at him, only to meet a second gash from the green sword. The second poe took this opportunity and sank it's teeth into Link's shoulder. He winced gasping as he felt his blood drip through his garments. The recoil from the bite drove his sword into the second poe's eye, killing it instantly. The grotesque blood spray onto Link and the ground. The wounded poe cried out at the loss of it's kin and went into a fury, struggling with link before numerous sword slashes caused it to expire. Link fell to his knees, panting heavily, weary of his first fight.

"W-we have Chu jelly here, if-f you need s-some," stuttered the boy next to Chase, still in fear of the poes but now in fear of Link. Link nodded. Even in as far out as Ordon, certain Chu jellies were known to have healing properties. They handed him a bottle fully of a red goo. He opened the jar and spred a bit of the gel onto the oozing and numb wound before drinking the rest. In a matter of seconds, the wound was sealing itself, and feeling returned to his sword arm.

Link replaced the sword into it's sheath. He looked up at Chase as he sat down. Chase understood and reached into the crate from before getting a small bag and some keys. Link detected the smell of something like soot from the bag and noticed the keys were worn with rust, no doubt from being in such disagreeable air.

"Got everything you need?" Link asked. He needed to get inside soon.

"Find your own way in. You attract too much danger for us. We'll take back up topside, but you're on your own after that." Grumbling, Link reluctantly accepted. In a few hours, they reached one of the back alleys where they left Link alone. Smirking at their mistake, He'd swiped two things from them: He'd grabbed the small soot-scented bag, and kept the bottle.

He slowly walked out from the alley into the bustle of the Hylian Metropolis. He explored the city, going through the market place. The street peddlers had all sorts of trinkets and toys, only a few carried anything useful to Link. Most of the toys were cloth rag dolls but there were a hand carved toys. The trinkets were mostly wire-spun rocks and beads, taken from the local stones.

Link made his way through the crowded streets, keeping his hand tight on his wallet satchel, worried about the previous incident. He came to a tailor shop. His clothes were in tatters and he needed a few extra rupees from the poe fight. He'd swiped them up after he killed them. H paid the tailor to stitch up his clothes and make him a new set. After an hour, the tailor had patched up his clothes and fashioned for him a green tunic. He thanked the tailor and went on his way, deciding he would examine it more later. So, before going on his way, he thanked the tailor.

Running out of ideas, he traveled to the main square. While he sat at the fountain square, he pondered, gazing at the fountain. The central fountain featured three triangles arranged into a larger triangle. Each of the large gold-leafed triangles served as a base for three women: specifically, the three goddesses, Din, Nayru, and Farore. They've stood resolute through out ages of both turmoil and prosperity. Then the main fountain diverted into four smaller lower tiers, corresponding to four animals: Goat, Eagle, Monkey, and Snake. Link continued studying the large fountain, going over the high degree of artistry put into the statues. _Such History_, Link thought to himself.

He then recalled a book he read once, given to him by the Elder. It contained the basic history of Hyrule as Link correctly recalled. The three women standing in the triangles known as the Triforce had created Hyrule and it's Peoples. He learned from stories of the catastrophe known as Twilight from the previous century and how the spirit animals of the fountain aided the Hero, who was also his name sake.

The youth stood up, snapping back to reality as a guard commander approached him. The guard looked at him, studying his appearance, and then looked at a parchment in his hand before saying, "Oy! You there. You're called Link right?" Link nodded. "You're from the Ordon Province right?" He nodded again. "Got a letter here statin' you got business in the library. That sound right?"

He nodded and said, "Yes, Sir."

"Well, follow me. I'll take you there."

And he obeyed following the man through the castle gates...


	7. The Library

**Sorry it's been a while for those of you who're following the story. It's been hectic with it being May and all. But, I digress, Here you are: The Library. Read, Enjoy, and Review. Also, I said that this world is expanded from TP. I'm drawing up a map soon. I'll figure out a way to post it in here.**

The guard led him through the castle walls. He had to vouch for him to the elite guards and took him to the guardians, the great Sheikah. The Sheikah Guardians wore robes of black with an eye emblem across their chests, always trimmed in red, blue, or gold. Only one had gold.

The one with gold was a fair bit shorter and much older than the rest. His back followed a slight hump from age. _He must be the elder,_ Link thought. The top of his head resembled a walnut shell: wrinkled and tanned. His beard was completely salt but not snowy white, and reached down to his waist. In one hand, he held a staff. His staff had carved into it ancient runes. Link recognized the text as Old Hylian, but he knew it would pointless to try and decipher it. Nobody knew Old Hylian anymore. His red eyes had a fire about them uncharacteristic of his apparent age, but flecks of the silver of wisdom.

Suddenly, the eyes came to focus on Link. The old man inched his way over to the boy, using the ancient twisted rod to hold his old frame up. He peered down his long crooked nose at the boy. His lips moved into a slight smile as he studied the boy. All the other Guardians stood silently as their Elder circled Link, who was feeling very nervous and self-conscious at this point.

The Elder stopped in front of Link then, and ordered, "Present the sword." His voice was rasp and almost choked, barely louder than a whisper. Yet, it held a will of tempered iron with the keenness of the sharpest of blades. Without hesitating, Link unstrapped the makeshift sheath and its blade. The Guardians moved their hands to rest on their various implements of combat: a few lances, several rapiers, and many variations of daggers. Link felt a slight pit in his stomach and gulped silently. No doubt, These men and women were trained to kill, armed or not. Still quite, he set the blade in question into the Elder's hands, who'd set his staff against one of the castle's massive columns.

The Sheikah relaxed their stances with a wave of their Elder's hand. Link, who'd been tense for a while, relaxed a little as well. The old shaky fingers wrapped around the swords hilt, and drew it from the leather sheath. He frowned as he drew the forest green blade. Without saying a word, he replaced the sword and returned it to Link.

"Take him to the Library. Tell her it's an emergency."

‡

The guard again led him through the halls until they reached two massive oak doors, bound with black iron. He opened the doors with an effort and brought Link into a massive chamber.

The chamber spanned at least a hundred feet in any direction. Tiles patterned the entire floor with fantastic geometry. Massive deep-set windows draped in gold illuminated all but the most remote areas of the maze of bookcases. Said bookcases lined the walls and flanked the main aisle all the way to the walls on each of the three levels, all of which at least twelve feet tall. Ladders rode a rail system on each of the packed mahogany cases. Statues of Heroes and Kings lined the main aisle. The dome above the chamber portrayed the history of Hyrule: from Creation to the slaying of the King of Evil and the Twilight Crisis. Link paused for a few seconds, taking in the view of the entire Library. When he stepped again, the footfall resonated with the echoes from the entire chamber, sustaining for a couple seconds before dying away.

From one of the desks on the far side of the main aisle, a tall silver-haired woman rose, carrying a leather-bound book. She stood perhaps a little taller than Link. She was clad in a simple cerulean blue dress and a tan robe with russet trim. Her robe bore the emblem of the Sheikah on her sleeves and her back. Her long hair framed her pale face and flowed down over her shoulders to torso and back in meandering, overlapping rivulets. Her features were extraordinarily beautiful, as if her face were sculpted by an artist. She bore no signs of old age in her appearance, but her eyes pierced Link with all the knowledge of the ages. Link also noticed her eyes held two different colors: gray and red.

When she was closer, she smiled at him and then shifted her gaze to the guard. Link looked down at the knots in the tiles.

A soft smooth voice filled the near silent atmosphere, "I was not aware the Library was open to visitors today." Link looked up at the woman again, captured by the clarity in her voice.

"Milady, the Elder sent him up to you. This is the courier from the Ordon Province."

"Very well," she nodded, "Leave us then. We have much to discuss." She again shifted her gaze to Link as she finished that last statement, meeting his eyes.

The guard bowed, and left the Library wordlessly. As the echoes of the door closing died away, the two still stood there gazing at each other with locked eyes. Link became tense, as if paralyzed by her gaze.

Then, she smiled at him and turned toward the tables, motioning for him to follow her. While walking to a particular table with a tier, she said, "Welcome, Link from Ordon."

He hesitated a step, but continued, replying, "Y-you know my name?"

She trilled a soft laugh, almost a giggle, "Of course. I'm the Librarian. I was informed you would be arriving within the week, but not so soon."

They reached the table and took two seats opposite each other. She spoke again to Link, "Could you place the object on the tier, please?"

This time, he did so without the nervousness accompanying him. He slid the leather sheath off the blade and set the blade on the table's tier. Her eyes narrowed, as if in thought. She examined the flawless, rust-free, edge of the blade. She touched the flat of the ricasso and studied the minute Old Hylian inscription.

_"'The third seal of the doppelganger,_'" She muttered. Then her eyes widened as she came to the realization of its meaning.

She grabbed his arm, crying out, "when did you draw this from its home?"

"three days ago.." he replied a bit afraid of her reaction to the blade. She sighed in relief at that response. _Good, it's only been three days..., _she thought to herself.

"You know the ancient tales of the Heroes of Hyrule, no?"

"not really... I know very little of their journeys."

"Then I'll tell you a little more about them..."


End file.
